US Military Suicides Surge

The Defense Department’s own statistics reveal there were 154 suicides by active-duty troops in the first 155 days of this year. An 18% increase from a year ago.

The numbers obtained by the Associated Press also show a rise in sexual assaults, alcohol abuse and domestic violence.But there’s no official explanation for the spikes. However, the Pentagon has established a suicide prevention office.

And one other revealing stat: A big portion of the suicides in the U.S. Army are commited by soldiers who never deployed to combat zones.